Generally described, monitoring systems can be used to obtain information from a variety of monitoring devices corresponding to one or more elements within a premises, or group of premises. In a representative use, a security monitoring system may provide real-time data reflecting the current status of a monitored environment, such as a physical location within a given premises. For example, a security guard may use a computer terminal to obtain video data from a number of image capture devices in order to assess the status of a premises, or an area within the premises. Accordingly, many conventional security monitoring systems can assist users in evaluating whether a security breach, or other monitoring event, has occurred (e.g., whether there is an unauthorized presence within the premises). Further, some security monitoring systems, upon the detection of a defined condition, are operable to initiate a number of reactive measures. For example, the monitoring system may alert an appropriate authority, or notify one or more authorized users, upon the detection of a given condition.
Some monitoring systems, such as security monitoring devices, have begun to incorporate biometric data monitoring devices, such as fingerprint scanners, retinal scanners, or facial recognition devices as part of a monitoring process. Although biometric monitoring devices can potentially facilitate the identification of individuals, objects and/or events, many traditional monitoring systems have not incorporated various biometric monitoring devices as part of an integrated monitoring process. For example, most monitoring systems are not configured to process incoming biometric data from a variety of monitoring devices because the incoming data often requires separate processing rules or reference sources. Additionally, some incoming biometric data is incompatible with the typical reference sources and/or processing rules. Thus, the use of biometric identification devices as part of an overall monitoring process is still limited.
In addition to the lack of ability to integrate biometric data processing as part of a monitoring process, many traditional monitoring systems do not provide or support robust data sources required by the traditional biometric identification devices. One skilled in the relevant art will appreciate that biometric identification tools require the use of data templates and data rules that are used to process biometric sample data coming in from the monitoring devices. For example, a biometric facial recognition identification device searching for all known felons would have to maintain data templates including the face templates of all known felons. In one aspect, many closed monitoring systems cannot efficiently support various biometric identification devices because of the strain on computing device resources in maintaining large stores of biometric template data. In another aspect, a monitoring system may be unable to utilize an external data template source if the data is maintained in an incompatible format. Accordingly, monitoring systems cannot integrate potential external data sources because of data format incompatibility.
Thus, based on the above-described deficiencies in the prior art, there is a need for a system and method for centrally processing and distributing biometric data templates and data rules to one or more processing systems. Additionally, there is a need for a system and method for processing specific instances and types of biometric data.